Saronic and South Korea's Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) have announced a strategic partnership aimed at accelerating the development of autonomous marine systems and supporting the revitalization of the U.S. shipbuilding industry.
The agreement was presented on Thursday at the opening of the Korea-U.S. Shipbuilding Partnership Center (KUSPC) in Washington, D.C. The partnership combines Saronic's expertise in autonomous surface vessels with SHI's extensive experience in commercial shipbuilding and advanced manufacturing.
The companies will collaborate on the development of vessels with autonomous capabilities for government and commercial clients, as well as explore digital technologies based on artificial intelligence, automation of manufacturing through robotics, and next-generation shipbuilding processes.
“Revitalizing America’s maritime power requires both world-class technology and industrial capacity to mass-produce it here at home,” said Dino Mavroukas, co-founder and CEO of Saronic. “Together, we will focus on accelerating the reindustrialization of American shipbuilding, training the workforce of the future, and delivering unique vessels with autonomous capabilities for both government and commercial needs.”
Vice Chairman and CEO of Samsung Heavy Industries Sung An Choi noted that the partnership brings together the complementary strengths of the companies in shipbuilding and marine autonomy to “create a more competitive future.”
This announcement comes just a week after Saronic selected Brownsville, Texas, as the site for its planned $3 billion autonomous shipbuilding facility, Port Alpha, a project that the company says will significantly enhance the U.S. capability to build large autonomous vessels.
Port Alpha is expected to begin construction later this year and open in 2028 on an initial 835-acre site at the Port of Brownsville. The company stated that the facility will ultimately be able to support vessels over 1,200 feet long and create up to 10,000 direct jobs over the next decade.
The partnership with Samsung also extends to manufacturing infrastructure, with the companies planning to explore automation processes based on robotics at Saronic's shipyards, including the new facility in Texas and the yard in Franklin, Louisiana. Saronic is also investing an additional $300 million to expand its manufacturing capacity at the Louisiana yard following last year's acquisition of Gulf Craft.
This collaboration reflects the growing efforts of the U.S. to strengthen domestic shipbuilding by combining American autonomous systems technology with the manufacturing expertise of allied shipbuilders. The agreement was announced during the opening of the Korea-U.S. Shipbuilding Partnership Center, an initiative sponsored by the U.S. Department of Commerce and the South Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy to deepen cooperation between the maritime sectors of both countries.
The agreement also aligns with broader initiatives of the Trump administration to revitalize shipbuilding in the U.S. and expand the maritime industrial base through investments in advanced manufacturing, workforce development, and next-generation ship technologies.
